What are our alumni up to these days?

Winter 2015 Newsletter

Patrick Wilson (Bosch XIV) is extending his stay in Jakarta with a new assignment as the Deputy Mission Director of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission to Indonesia. USAID’s $700 million program is the cornerstone of U.S. Government development efforts in Indonesia, which is the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation, third-largest democracy, and the fourth-largest nation on earth. Patrick can often be found on Thursday nights at the Wunderbar at the German Embassy, honing his Schlager karaoke skills.

Michele Gault Woonacott (Bosch XXI) and her family (husband Richard, and 2 year old son William) are currently posted in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, where she and her husband both work at the U.S. Embassy. After 2 years of adjudicating what seems like countless visas, they will be transferring to the U.S. Consulate General in Melbourne, Australia, in June 2016. Michele will be working there as the political/economic officer. Any Boschies currently living in Australia, please get in touch!

In October, Dr. Robert J. Devine (Bosch III) was invested in the Noble Compañía de Ballesteros Hijosdalgo de San Felipe y Santiago as Ballestero de Hermandad. As noted in the 14th century statutes and indicated on the contemporary petition for admission, members must be Catholic men who: (a) are armigerous (with their arms duly registered in Spain), (b) if married, are validly married according to Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church to women of good breeding; and (c) possess nobility in the male line. By virtue of their admission, members of the Noble Company receive the honorific Don for themselves and their male descendants (who will inherit and transmit the member’s armorial bearings). The members’ wives and female descendants are referred to as Doña. Robert is a descendant of Borrell II, Count of Barcelona, Girona & Ausona and Count of Urgell who, together with Norman knights, battled Caliph Al-Hakam II for the liberation of Catalonia.

Robert was also heavily engaged in the Fall social season including a reception for the Vatican Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, the Annual Texas Hereditary Societies banquet in Houston and the Navy League Ball in Fort Worth which honored the Navy’s 50th Anniversary of its involvement in the Vietnam War. Robert and his wife Gleceria (center) are pictured with survivors of the Republic of Vietnam Navy who escaped the Communist takeover under the heroic leadership of US diplomat Richard Armitage on board the USS Kirk which escorted the South Vietnamese flotilla to safety in Subic Bay, Philippines. Robert was also invited in his capacity as Deputy Governor-General of the Society of Colonial Wars to attend the review stand of the Fort Worth Veterans Day ceremonies honoring American Vietnam War veterans.

Pilar Wolfsteller (Bosch X) has joined global IT Services company Infosys as Head of Communications for the Americas. Pilar is based in Silicon Valley and her duties include strategic media and public relations as well as content development and thought leadership initiatives. She’s also responsible for external communications for the company’s CSR activities, conducted through Infosys Foundation USA. The foundation concentrates on bridging the digital divide in America by supporting high quality computer science education and coding skills with a particular focus on under-represented communities. She’s reachable at*protected email*.

Lena Hagelstein Dente (Bosch XXI) just started a new position as Head of Government Relations for the World Energy Council. While the Council is based in London, she is working out of Zurich, which gives her the chance to blend family and work life. Her first work trip was just a few days after she started and sent to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia which was a great opportunity to visit a part of Africa that she’d never seen before. Lena would be happy to meet up with any Bosch Alum who make their way through Zurich.

Staci Bivens XXIII says, “I hope this finds you all well. Things are good here. After my time at Russia Today, I traveled Europe and India. Then, I moved back to Chicago where I taught English at a language school and spent time with family. I am now auntie to my two favorite people who call me Tia Staci.” Istanbul is home now for Staci. She produces at English language broadcaster TRT World. Both the job and the city are fun. Staci even finds occasion to use her German here. Drop her a line if you’re town.

Eulynn (center) with a group of German educators.

Eulynn Shiu (Bosch XXVI) recently hosted a group of German educators on a U.S. tour coordinated by the Europaeische Akademie Bayern to learn about the U.S. State Department’s public diplomacy efforts. Eulynn is transitioning from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs to the Office of the Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy, where she will continue to manage research projects and train foreign service officers in program evaluation techniques. She, her husband, and her toddler will welcome a new addition to the family in February 2016.

Paul Glader (Bosch XXVIII) was named executive director of The Media Project, a non-profit that focuses on training, leadership and professional development for its network of 600 + international journalists, most of them in the Global South. Glader will take on that role while maintaining his current full-time post as Associate Professor of Journalism at The King’s College in New York City. He traveled to Norway, Uganda, Ethiopia, El Salvador and Colombia this past year in training projects with The Media Project.

Clare Waldmann (XXXI) recently joined s.Pro – sustainable projects GmbH, a consulting firm in Berlin specialized in initiating and managing transnational sustainable development projects, especially in the ‘blue growth’ and maritime spatial planning fields. She is thrilled to have found a position in Berlin where she can contribute her project management and maritime policy expertise, even though she is far away from the ocean.

On his way to an ELEEP week focused on offshore wind, Scott Kuhlke (Bosch XXVI) swung through Munich in September and helped Dan Fleischer (Bosch XXVI) celebrate Oktoberfest with some old BOSCH Stage colleagues. Dan’s still riding the renewable energy roller coaster and looks like he’ll be spending a lot of time in SoCal over the next few months, so he’s looking forward to connecting with any alumni around.

Since finishing the Bosch Fellowship this past spring, Allison Wildman (XXXI) has moved to Freiburg, the cutest, sunniest city in Germany in October 2015. She’s working as a Officer at ICLEI – European Secretariat in the Governance and Social Innovation group. Allison continues practicing German every day at the Goethe Institut in an 8-week intensive course, and she participated in a panel discussion with James Brainard, Mayor of Carmel (IN), and Simone Pflaum, Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Freiburg, on the role and influence of local government in the fight against climate change (“Why Cities Matter: On the Road to COP21”). The event was sponsored by the U.S. Embassy – Berlin, and hosted in Freiburg by the Carl Schurz Haus Deutsch-Amerikanische Institut and the UWC Robert Bosch College on December 5, 2015. In her spare time, she’s also mastering the Art of Becoming German (z.b. Plätzchen Rezept for Hildatörtchen available here, selbst-gemacht Adventzkranz, hat einen Weihnachtenpyramid gekauft)